Good, basic blend combination in the light English genre. Latakia hangs in through the bowl, but at times the Oreiental influence pokes through. At times the flavors are muddled, but sipping at these points allows the components to seperate out a bit (oftentimes the case, in general). Solid smoking experience, stays lit on one good light, post char. 3*.

This is one of the ingredients that I call my 'main smoke'. I blend this with another Tinder Box product--Black Cavendish. I find the mildness of the black cav really suits this tobacco. Things I really like about Sherlock's choice is the smoky latakia. It reminds me of smoking a glass of lslay scotch (and the flavors compliment, i assure you). I'm not a big fan of 'extra strong' tobaccos. i don't want spinning rooms after puffing a bowl. So for me, this is a nice all-day smoke for any weather and occasion. I've smoked it for years with the Black Cav mix. i hope you enjoy it as well!

When on the road I like to try local shops and so, while a chain, a Tinderbox was on my way. Not bad, not good. A light english blend, Smokes evenly. Latakia and a bit of spicyness throught the whole bowl. I found in this, and another Tinderbox blend, a few more stems than I am used to among the leaves, otherwise no complaints. I would not go out of my to buy it, but I will happily smoke it till gone. It is great for breaking in some Latakia dedicated pipes I have been meaning to smoke. If you have a choice of Tinderbox or OTC, go Tinderbox.

The Virginia is grassy and citrus sweet. It forms the base of the blend. The Cyprian latakia is smoky, woody sweet in a support role. The Oriental/Turkish is woody and dry, with a touch of spice in the background. All the components work well together and are not overwhelmed by the latakia. Has a mild nic-hit. Won't bite or get harsh. It burns clean, cool, and dry with a consistent flavor all the way through. Leaves little moisture in the bowl, and requires an average number of relights. Has a pleasant after taste. It may not be as complex in taste as some other blends on the market, but it stands well enough on its own as an enjoyable all day smoke for an experienced smoker or one who's trying English blends for the first time. Tastes the same to me now as it did when I first tried it back in the mid-1970s.

Comparing this to blends like Squadron Leader, Penzance, Dunhill 965 etc is doing this fine blend a disservice. The truth is that it does not try to be like those other mixtures. It wasn't blended to replace Balkan Sobranie or Red Rapparee or London Mixture (to pick blends that are more contemporary to this one); it was blended to fill a specific niche - that of a very mild English made for aromatic smokers who wanted to try something different. This was developed to be as much like Penzance as the Tinder Box's cherry blend is to Gawiths Sweet Cherry Twist tobacco. One blend uses cherry as its overall presentation and one just wants a slight sweetener.

My only comparison product is McClellands Frogmorton On The Town. Not because they taste alike - not at all! But they both possess a light latakia leaf with a somewhat creamy blend flavor... something that smokes easily and is mild. This has less overall flavor than FOTT, and I think less latakia flavor was the whole point when Lane blended it originally. It's a soft, round, piquant taste rather than a balkan powerhouse. Complex? No way! Flavor development down the bowl? Nope. Destined for the Tobacco Hall of Fame? Nuh-uh. But if you want a taste of latakia in a smooth blend rather than to have the latakia rule, try this one.

And if you want to move up the flavor chain from here, two words: Squadron Leader.

As previous reviewers have noted the is, "a good all-day smoke". I find this somewhat ironic because I've never been fond of Lane Tobaccos...much less those that are sold to chain tobacco shops. I do like Tinder Box's Special Blend occasionally as well and may review that later.

This bulk blend is not as "round", soft, and striking as many other English type blends available but there is something about this blend that offers some intrique... not quite sure what it is though. A subtle taste and aroma of very light chocolate mingled with a smokey wood stove smell and a rather nice flavor that stays with you through the entire bowl.

Not a blend I would stick with regularly but certainly one I will continue to buy and smoke as a break from my usual Virginia Plugs and Flakes. Nor will it replace the Balkan Flakes I enjoy. An interesting smoke and one that I would recommend without any reservation.

I smoked the majority of this blend in a 1968 dunhill, group 4, tapered stem, rusticated bulldog.

Of note... I never found anything resembling broken flake in this blend... only thin ribbons of the tobaccos present.

Purchased an ounce to sample from the Tinder Box in Collierville,Tn. As soon as I lit I was immediately overwhelmed with a strong chemical flavor with a matching aroma. There was obviously some sort of contamination possibly from a cleaning chemical or air freshener. Odd seeing as I have never experienced that from any of their other tobaccos.

When I first started smoking this tobacco was my adventure into english blends. At the time I thought this tobacco was great. Now that I've been smoking high quality english blends like C&D Star of the East and others, Sherlocks is mediocre. Wheres the Latakia? Its not horrible just that I've been spoiled. I guess its a good mild transition blend to stronger english blends. I just think for the money you can get some better bulk blends.

This is my everyday smoke. No bite, you can smoke bowl after bowl without worrying of toung bite. Slightly chocolaty, like light coffee. Smokes really well. You can pack it light or tight. I seem to have no problem to keeping it lit. Usually only takes me two matches. Good for long drives don't have to worry about relighting while I'm driving.

Another excellent Tinderbox blend. I prefer Chartwell for an all- day smoker, but this is an exceptional blend for an after dinner smoke. Definitely made it in my standard rotation. The Latikia is what makes this blend, in my opinion. A fine English blend.

Mild across the board. Not entirely sure i want to toy with tinderbox tobacco after this one. Sampled a bowl at tinderbox with my pipe heavily caked with another tobacco and was tricked into thinking this blend was comparable. Not sure how i missed that one. It was my own undoing. Three pipes later and I realized my mistake. It is cheap though so if your looking to save some green tinderbox is better than prince albert and about the same price.

The more that I smoke Sherlock, the better he gets. I find the balance between the VA, the Latakia, and the Turkish to be perfect. The Latakia is what makes this blend happen for me - it's at a perfect level. I happen to like moist, flavor filled English blends. I don't mind relights. It takes a few extra matches for me, sometimes, to get Sherlock rolling. But once he's going, he's a solid, smoke filled, long lasting smoke. I refuse to smoke indoors, and certainly would never smoke around non-smokers. However, I would not recommend Sherlock for his room note.

Crappy. Full of burley with some other stuff thrown in to make it an 'English' blend. Tastes like tar. Stick with 'Philosopher' if you want an English blend from Tinderbox. Otherwise, try Sam Gawith's Squadron Leader or for a good Balkan try Dunhill's Early Morning Pipe.

This was my first foray into English blends, and I picked it out at the time because I lived near a Tinder Box and am a big Sherlock Holmes fan. This is a fine English for anyone just starting out in that style of tobaccos, but once you try something like Squadron Leader you'll realize why others here have said that Sherlock's Choice is just so bland. Nothing much really happens here, and I still have a pound cellaring right now. I guess I like to have this on hand because it's cheap, a workable English, and available in bulk (in my area). Squadron Leader is much better, so go there first.

I was inspired to try this blend because, at the time, I was reading the Complete Sherlock Holmes. I bought it for nostalgia sake. I must say, even though it smelled very strong in the pouch, it was extremely weak in the pipe. There were no levels of flavor, no nuances, just plain bland.

I am mainly an aromatic smoker, but have ventured a wee bit into the English blend arena. This is the second English blend I've tried, and to me it is enlightening. Quite honestly, I was so turned off after my first English experience that I had all but written off English blends altogether. This one reopened my eyes.

Sherlock's was one of the first English blends I smoked. Not a bad blend, just not much happens when you smoke it. Lights ok, burns ok, and tastes ok. However, there are just too many good English blends out there to spend your hard earned money on this one. If you like Tinderbox, and I do, try the blend they have called Special.

I have worked at my local tinderbox for over a year now and have since moved on from this blend but I can sincerly say I wouldn't be the pipe smoker I am today withought it. As the first english blend I had this was, at the time, quite nice. I would recomend this for anyone trying to get your feet wet in the english market, and maybe as a starting point for the nicer blends like margate, westminster, or every ex RAF man's favorite squadron leader.

All anyone of my relative age need do to rate the traditionally-named Tinder Box blends is to pop into a Tinder Box today. As the old joke says, "Nostalgia ain't what it used to be."

Neither are Tinder Box blends. No way; no how, no, sir!

This is not to say, categorrically, that tobaccos of 2007 that bear the same names as those of 1977 are much-the less---but, so help me....THEY ARE!!!!!!!!

Tinder Box's "Sherlock's Choice" has always been made by Lane, Ltd. But for those who remember Lane in its salad days....'tis a lesser world, indeed. I discovered Tinder Box tobaccos in 1976...and there ain't no sunshine three-decades later.

Sherlock's Choice has a scrumptious aroma in the pouch, reminding one more of Smokers' Haven's "20th Anniversary" than Esoterica's "And So To Bed." Regretably, it delivers neither at the match. In fact, it delivers NOTHING at the match except a decent, smokable tobacco.

I'd say that this is my favorite all-around Tinder Box blend. That isn't to say that it's going to go down in history as one of the great Balkan/English blends, but it's pretty reasonable at $2.00 per ounce. It's reasonably tasty, and one thing that I like about it is that it's a fairly full latakia blend that doesn't leave your mouth feeling like the Chinese army walked through it in sweat socks. It definitely has a smoky presence on the palate - like a wood stove. As with many bulk blends, and frankly every Lane one that I've tried, this is pretty heavy on the PG. It can smoke hot and give a good gurgle in your pipe if puffed too quickly. There's always some dottle left for me, but that's not a biggie. It's pretty good, and may make for a good blend to break in a new pipe that will be dedicated to latakia-based blends.

Tinder Box Sherlock`s Choice tobacco is well worth 2 dollars per ounce to anyone interested in english/balkan style blends. It has a great texture and packs very nicely into any size bowl. Burns very well...one of the few tobaccos that I rarely need to relight to get to the end of a bowl. Seems to burn a little fast at times, so not the best choice for a 2 hour smoke in that calabash! It is actually quite a tasty tobacco and the flavour becomes much richer and more complex as you progress through a session with it. Unlike for example, a virginia, it`s easy to keep the bowl from becoming overly hot and is what I call a `controllable` smoke. The taste can be quite acrid and `tangy` at times, and does lose a little flavour towards the end of the bowl..but then how many tobaccos don`t? Distinct taste of latakia, but mainly orientals and I think perique present. Leaves the pipe surprisingly dry with little or no gurgling. Probably not the greatest room note, for the non-smokers around you. Also seems to leave what I would describe as a "nicely dirty tasting mouth" afterwards! All in all, a solid reliable tobacco well worthy of anyones hard earned.

I recieved two ounces of the fine weed for my birthday and am now smoking the last bowl as I write this review. I was a bit apprehensive when I loaded my first bowl as I didn't think a bulk blend from a chain tobacco store would be any good. Boy was I wrong!

Sherlock's Choice will not go down as one of the great tobaccos but what it does offer is a fantastic all day smoke. I think it is like a great table wine. Not amazing but good enough to want to smoke everyday, which is what I now do. It's not heavy on the palate. It doesn't bit no matter hard I puff, and believe me, I puff like a mad locomotive. It has enough flavor to keep me interested and enough smoke to make it fun.

I really like this blend and would recommend it anyone who likes a good all around smoke.

This is a very good smoke, rich and inviting.It is a very natural smoke without the cloying sweetness of a aromatic. At the same time it is more complex then a simple one note smoke. I enjoy this smoke at any time but it needs to be smoked slowly to appreciate it.

This was the very first English blend I had ever tried and it was purchased along with some 965, Sherlocks choice is very sweet at first light giving way to the Virginia and Latakia, the rest of the bowl is seemingly uneventfull save for the potential to bite if you are not carefull. This was at first blamed on my inexperience with the English blends but I have revisted it several times after testing many others and find that it is a little bland compared to the 965 and say Nightcap. The bite potential is a problem and not just me, you must go easy on this stuff. All in all it is a good end of day smoke or a walk the dog smoke, the wife and kids are not fond of the room note but don't whimper as much as when I smoke Commonwealth Blend or Penznance. Not a good one to start out on.